


Nine Lives

by Hazel_Athena



Category: The Magnificent Seven (2016)
Genre: Fluff, Kittens, M/M, Modern AU, meet cute
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-08-18
Updated: 2019-08-18
Packaged: 2020-09-06 19:46:56
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 5,448
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/20296969
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Hazel_Athena/pseuds/Hazel_Athena
Summary: “I’m sorry,” Teddy says when the man pauses for breath long enough to let him get a word in edgewise. “You found it where?”





	Nine Lives

**Author's Note:**

> Written for the Mag7 2019 Reverse Big Bang and based on Edna’s amazing art. Seriously, y’all, go tell her how awesome she is.
> 
> ” />

The thing about working the night shift at one of the few twenty four hour vet clinics in town, is that they really do attract all kinds. When the sound of the bell ringing cuts through the silence of his office, Vasquez stands up from behind his desk and trudges towards the front room, idly wondering what kind of encounter he’ll be facing this time.

His last appointment had been a dog who’d eaten the lenses straight out of his owner’s glasses. Before that it had been a cat with a suspected urinary blockage who’d turned out to just be constipated. Truly, Vasquez has chosen the most glamorous of professions.

Hoping it will be an issue of a similar vein and not something legitimately serious, Vasquez pushes open the door that separates the waiting room from the rest of the clinic, only to blink at what he finds.

A large and unfairly attractive ginger haired man is leaning against the front desk, doing so in a manner that suggests said desk is at least partly responsible for keeping him upright. He’s enthusiastically explaining something to the night clerk, Teddy, who thankfully seems amused by the whole thing, as opposed to alarmed.

“I’m sorry,” Teddy says when the man pauses for breath long enough to let him get a word in edgewise. “You found it where?”

“Out back of the One Trick Pony,” the man replies. “It’s a bar,” he adds when Teddy gives him a confused shrug. “I was politely asked to leave for reasons that don’t need explaining at this juncture, and I heard her yelling when I was in the alley. Not sure if somebody dumped her there or if she got separated from her Ma, but I couldn’t just leave her behind.”

“Of course you couldn’t,” Teddy says, and Vasquez can’t help but agree. Whatever small, abandoned animal the man had found on the street deserved a better chance than would be afforded by a back alley behind a seedy bar. This he knows for a fact.

Clearing his throat to announce his presence, he steps up beside Teddy to see what all the fuss is about. “Can I help you?”

The man’s eyes widen. “Holy shit, can you ever,” he breathes. “Are all vets this hot?”

Teddy does a very poor job of trying to disguise a laugh as a cough. Glaring at him in a way he hopes conveys the phrase, ‘I can and will fire you if I so choose’, Vasquez nods towards the nearest examination room. “Why don’t you go get that set up, hmm?”

He gets a look that suggests Teddy is far from appropriately cowed, and then the younger man scuttles off to do as he’s been asked. Vasquez waits until he’s certain he’s gone before turning back to their new arrival.

It occurs to him that, along with being clearly intoxicated, the man is very wet. A quick glance at the window tells him it’s storming out, and he winces at the thought of whatever poor creature the man has discovered being out in such a mess.

“So,” he says finally, “what exactly brings you here, Mr ...?”

“Faraday,” the man supplies helpfully, he has very green eyes and is sporting a shirt with the words ‘Kiss me,’ emblazoned across the front with a little shamrock down below. “Josh Faraday, and this is Constantine.”

He reaches into his pocket, and gently pulls out a kitten who’s completely dwarfed by his hand. He sets it on the countertop where it stares up at Vasquez with eyes that are just as green as its rescuer’s, water streaming off its dark fur in rivulets that puddle around all four paws.

Vasquez snorts. “Constantine,” he repeats, eyeing the creature that can’t possibly weigh more than two pounds even with its waterlogged fur. “That’s quite the name.”

“S’a good name,” Josh insists, holding out his hand so the kitten can rub up against it. “I had to call an Uber to get us here, and the driver was cool with her hitching a ride. He even helped check us in with your buddy and everything before he left. She’s named after him.”

“I ... see,” Vasquez says, deciding there’s simply too much there for him to unpack in one evening. “Well. That was nice of him.”

“Yeah, he was a real bro,” Josh nods. 

“No doubt,” Vasquez replies. He watches the kitten toddle about the counter, seemingly secure in the knowledge that Josh won’t let her fall if she gets close to the edge. Since he deftly guides her away from it when she tries to do just that, he supposes she’s justified. “She seems to like you.”

“You think?” Josh asks, and it doesn’t take a genius to tell he’s pleased by the idea. “Feeling’s mutual. She’s a real cute little thing. I’m hoping Jack’ll be down to keep her.”

At the mention of what he can only assume is a romantic partner of some kind, Vasquez feels an unprecedented stab of jealousy that he tells to fuck off back to wherever it had come from. He sees plenty of good samaritans with animals who’ve been hard done by in his line of work, there’s no reason for this one to be any different.

Clearing his throat, he’s about to ask if he can’t see the kitten to try and get a better look at her when Teddy reappears to announce that the examination room is ready. He turns to where Josh is now curled protectively around his bedraggled companion. “Did you want to come in with her?”

Josh gives him what can charitably be called a stink eye. “And here was me thinking I’m the one who’s drunk,” he says, snickering when Vasquez blinks at him. “‘Course I’m comin’ with her. Me and Constantine are pals.”

“I’m very happy for you both,” Vasquez says dryly. He waits until Josh has scooped the kitten up, telling himself sternly not to be moved by the way she fits across the expanse of his palm, and nods towards the open doorway. “Right this way.”

He leads the other man into the sterile room, allowing him some time to settle the kitten down on the large metal table that dominates it while he digs out a fresh pair of gloves. Snapping them on over his fingers, he then returns to - god help him - Constantine, who eyes him in a way that suggests he’s a poor substitute for her rescuer. 

“Easy, señorita,” he says, pitching his voice low in an attempt to keep her calm. “I’m just going to give you a little check up, see if maybe you’ve got anything we should be concerned about going on. I’m not going to hurt you, I promise.”

“Reckon there’s not too many people she’s come in contact with who she can say that about,” Josh mutters darkly. “Much as I might wish otherwise, I doubt she got into the dumpster I fished her out of by accident.”

“Probably not, no,” Vasquez admits, hating that he has to agree with him. “She’s very lucky you heard her, and that you stopped to get her out. Not everybody would have.”

Josh snorts. “I wouldn’t have been able to look Jack in the eye if I hadn’t,” he declares, swaying slightly due to the force of his words. “He’d be able to  _ tell _ .”

Once again reminding himself not to trust the occasional periods of near lucidity, Vasquez nods towards the matching set of plastic seats that are shoved up against one wall. “Did you want to sit down during this? I promise I can hold her on my own.”

It’s a rare animal that he needs help holding down thanks to his size, so a kitten roughly the weight of a tennis ball isn’t about to be a problem.

Josh, however, merely shakes his head. “I’m good,” he says loftily. “Gonna keep my lady company.”

That’s at least the second time he’s made reference to keeping the kitten for good. Almost against his will, Vasquez finds himself hoping that it’s not just the alcohol talking, and he really does mean it.

He shifts the kitten carefully in his hands, wincing only slightly when she bats at him with her sharp little claws extended. “Judging by her teeth I’d say she’s maybe ten weeks old, but if that’s true she’s quite underweight. If she’s been living with someone, they haven’t been feeding her properly.”

“Bastards,” Josh growls low under his breath. “Only a coward would do something like that to a defenceless animal and then toss her to boot.”

Vasquez is inclined to agree with him, but decides not to push. “There’s no way to know where she came from,” he notes. “Though, regardless, she’s lucky you came along. She’s weak enough she might not have survived this weather.”

“But she’ll be alright, won’t she?” Josh asks. His gaze is intense, the kind that makes something odd stir in the pit of Vasquez’s stomach. “Now that’s she’s here getting help, I mean.”

“I ... hopefully,” Vasquez says. After years in this line of work he knows better than to speak in absolutes. Yet when Josh’s face falls, he can’t help but add, “She  _ should _ be alright. There’s no sign of any deeper health concerns beyond the need to fatten her up, and in here she’ll be warm and dry.”

He watches the kitten as she tries to bite at his thumb. She’s so tiny that all she really gets is a mouthful of rubber glove for her troubles. “I want to check her heart and lungs. Can you hold her steady for me?”

Josh immediately curls both hands around Constantine’s body, bracketing her in with his fingers and inadvertently brushing them against Vazquez’s in the process. “Sure,” he says simply. “I don’t mind.”

Neither, based on the way she flops onto him in a contented heap, does Constantine. It’s faint, but Vasquez is pretty sure he can hear her purring. Clearly this cat knows what she wants.

Notably, that isn’t Vasquez. The purring stops the moment he presses the stethoscope to her chest, and she glares at him like his very existence is a major inconvenience at best.

The glaring turns into a flat out hiss when he finishes with the stethoscope and proceeds to pick up a light to slide into her ears while he checks for mites and anything else that might be lurking there thanks to her time on the streets. Swatting at him angrily, she tries to scramble away from him, and the only thing that prevents her from succeeding is Josh’s hand on her back.

“Easy, girl,” he says gently. “Let Dr. Hotass check you out. He’s trying to help.”

Vasquez rolls his eyes heavenward. “I have a name, you know.”

“No, I don’t,” Josh counters. “I gave you mine, but you never gave me yours.”

“...oh.” Embarrassed, Vasquez fidgets with the tool in his hands. “Dr. Alejandro Vasquez, at your service,” he says finally. “Nice to meet you.”

“Damn right it is,” Josh agrees amicably.

He follows it up with what he no doubt imagines is a roguish wink, and Vasquez can’t help but laugh at the sheer nerve of him. “Does your partner know you’re this shameless, guero? Or is it just the alcohol talking?”

Josh’s brow furrows in a manner that leaves Vasquez hard pressed to find a descriptor for other than cute. “What partner?” He asks, tilting his head to the side. “I’m single.”

Vasquez blinks. “You’ve mentioned someone named Jack at home at least twice,” he says, feeling oddly flustered. The man’s drunk for crying out loud, and technically a potential customer. They shouldn’t even be having this conversation.

If he’s offended, however, Josh fails to show it. Instead, he laughs. “Jack’s my dog, dude, not my boyfriend. Here, you wanna see?”

Keeping one hand on Constantine, he brings the other around to dig in his back pocket. It takes him longer than it should to fish his phone out, no doubt thanks to the alcohol, and when he does he shows Vasquez the picture that is his lock screen. “Ain’t he handsome?”

Nearly going cross eyed thanks to how close Josh has shoved the phone towards him, Vasquez finds himself staring at a one eyed beast that is possibly the world’s first successful bear/dog crossbreed. “A beauty,” he says, earning himself a beaming grin in response. “Where did you get him?”

The grin disappears, and is replaced by an expression that can be best described as ‘shifty’. “Not sure how it’s relevant,” Josh says evasively, “but it’s possibly possible that I obtained him through less than legal means, but for a very good reason.”

Vasquez notes the scars adorning the dog’s snout, and considers what a man who stopped to dig a kitten out of a dumpster while drunk in the rain would do in the face of someone actively abusing an animal. “Works for me,” he says, fine to leave it at that. He moves the light away from Constantine’s ears. “No sign of mites, which is good, but I’m pretty sure she has a mild case of fleas. I’ll grab a treatment pack in a moment.”

“You get her whatever she needs,” Josh informs him. “Is she big enough to start vaccinating yet? Jack’s up to date on all his.”

Vasquez blinks, surprised he’d made that connection in his current state. “She is,” he says carefully, “but I’m not sure we should do that tonight.”

Josh gives him a baffled look. “The hell wouldn’t you?” He demands.

_ Because you are drunk enough that I’m not sure you’ll remember this conversation, let alone that you wanted to take her home with you, _ Vasquez thinks, but doesn’t say aloud. 

“She’s been through a lot,” he says instead, keeping his tone deliberately professional, “and I’m thinking she should probably stay here overnight for observation. Why don’t we do that first, and then when you come back we can draw up a vaccination schedule?”

He can mark the kitten down as a rescue drop off, and waive the fees for her initial consultation that way. If Josh does come back it’ll be up to him to decide in the harsh light of day how much he wants to spend on her, and if he doesn’t, well, they have arrangements with various animal shelters for a reason. Either way, Constantine will get the treatment she needs.

Clearly unable to follow the thoughts meandering their way through Vasquez’s brain, Josh nods solemnly. “That makes sense,” he declares, but then, “She won’t be left alone, right? Someone’ll keep her company?”

“Well, we don’t mind the kennels 24/7,” Vasquez begins, already holding up a hand to forestall Josh’s inevitable protest, “but in this case I figure we can make an exception. It’s a slow night. Someone can sit in with her.”

“And by someone, you mean you?” Josh asks. Only he does it in a way that’s more of a command than a question, and Vasquez resigns himself to doing his paperwork in a folding chair parked next to Constantine’s crate.

“Sure,” he sighs, knowing full well Teddy is going to document everything for posterity and then forward it off to Emma, thereby ruining his life for the foreseeable future. “I mean me.”

“Perfect,” Josh brightens. “Sounds great. I’m sure she’ll appreciate being the focus of your attention, I know I would.”

It’s such an utterly horrible line, made all the worse by the fact that Vasquez finds himself blushing regardless. Sternly telling his traitorous face to stop doing whatever it’s doing, he shifts away to search for the small cans of wet food he tends to keep on hand for instances such as these.

He opens the correct cupboard. Noticing that his supply is starting to get low, he makes a mental note to have Teddy order some more to restock. “What do you think?” He asks. “Chicken or tuna?”

When no response is immediately forthcoming, he turns to find Josh locked in a staring contest with his furry friend. Several seconds pass before, “Chicken. That’s totally her favourite.”

Vasquez doesn’t ask. He simply picks up a can of the chosen flavour and grips the little pull tab between thumb and forefinger. Peeling it back, he sets the whole thing down in front of Constantine on the table.

Who stares at it. Then she nudges the can with one paw. Then she turns around to mew pitifully at Josh.

“Doc,” he says reproachfully. “She needs a plate.”

Vasquez glances back and forth between him and the kitten. Matching pairs of green eyes stare back at him expectantly, and almost against his will he finds himself going to dig out one of the tiny dishes they keep in here for certain occasions. He then upends the can over it and pushes the whole thing towards Constantine.

She falls on it like a thing possessed, practically shoving her entire face into the gooey slop. “Charming,” Vasquez says dryly. “At least we know she has a healthy appetite.”

“Yeah,” Josh says, but he sounds oddly subdued as he watches the pint sized kitten eat. When Vasquez gives him a knowing look, he shrugs self-consciously. “Sorry. I was just thinkin’ that she’s probably so hungry because no one’s fed her in a while. S’kind of a bummer, you know?”

“Eh, yes, I suppose that’s true, but a better way to look at it is now she won’t ever go hungry again,” Vasquez points out, pleased when Josh immediately brightens.

“That’s fair,” he says. “Jack eats like a fucking king.”

“Jack sounds like a very lucky dog, guero.” Vasquez informs him. “I’m sure he’s extremely well taken care of.”

“What can I say? He’s my fella,” Josh announces, maybe a little louder than necessary. “I approve of his many and varied personality quirks.”

Vasquez has no idea what that means, and nor does he feel now is the time to ask. Constantine has mostly finished up her meal, which means her appointment is nearing its end.

He says as much to Josh, who pouts. “Aw, and we were just getting to know each other too. What time do you folks open tomorrow?”

“8am,” Vasquez replies, stomping down heavily on the urge to tell him that his next shift isn’t until far later in the day. “You can stop by and pick her up at any time.”

“Awesome,” Josh declares, and Vasquez can’t help but agree.

*****

Vasquez comes in the following afternoon to find Emma waiting for him with her hands on her hips.

“Alejandro,” she says, pursing her lips as he rocks to a stop in front of her lest he accidentally run her over. “Why is there a large scruffy man in the back room introducing a malnourished kitten to an equally large scruffy dog?”

Vasquez gapes at her. “He came back?” He blurts, unable to hide the fact that he’s pleased.

Emma gives him a knowing look. “So that’s how it is,” she says, and oh but Vasquez trusts neither her tone nor her expression. “I see.”

“You see nothing,” Vasquez replies, wanting to nip whatever this is in the bud right now. “It’s all in the reports from last night. He found her outside a bar while it was raining, and called an Uber to bring her in. I said she should stay overnight for observation, and he said he’d be back for her in the morning. Apparently he’s a man of his word.”

“He’s something alright,” Emma informs him. “Did he tell you about the dog? It’s huge, probably a rescue of some kind judging by the scars.”

“He did,” Vasquez acknowledges. “Jack, I believe is his name, and you’re right, he’s a rescue. Though I didn’t get much of the story beyond that, nor did I ask.”

“Yeah, me either,” Emma admits, her tone such that Vasquez knows she’s going to leave it at that. “He asked me if we were taking on new clients. Said between us treating the kitten and the fact that his current vet isn’t great with the dog maybe this would be the place for them.”

“Oh did he?” Vasquez asks, trying and no doubt failing to sound innocent. “What did you tell him?”

“That we are but I’d leave the paperwork to you since you dealt with him last night. Given the texts I received from Teddy during the evening, not to mention the in person run down he gave me when I got here, I figured you’d appreciate that.”

Her smile confirms how unbelievably screwed he is, and Vasquez winces at this none too subtle reminder of where their tech’s loyalties truly lie. He’d known Teddy would rat him out, but that doesn’t mean he has to like it.

“One day,” he says loftily, “I will find a way to get rid of your little minion.”

“Doubtful,” Emma replies, as Vasquez begins heading for the back room, “and even if you do that day is not today. Now, go handle our newest client. I’m positive he’s more interested in dealing with you than he is with me.”

He hears Josh before he sees him because the man’s voice is drifting out from the kennel area, clearly engaged in a conversation with somebody else.

“...see what I mean?” He’s saying, sounding fond. “Yeah, of course you do. I knew you would.”

It’s at this point that Vasquez rounds a remaining corner, and gets his first good look at his visitor. Still dressed in last night’s clothes, Josh is sitting with his back to the wall, long legs splayed out in front of him while he holds Constantine out for the dog - Jack, no doubt - sprawled in his lap to sniff.

Jack is ... the word huge doesn’t even begin to describe him. The photo Vasquez had seen last night had been a close up of his face, and truly had not done him justice. Constantine is maybe half of the size of one massive paw.

Despite that, neither she nor the dog seem concerned by their relative size disparities. As Vasquez watches, Constantine wriggles in Josh’s hand, and then proceeds to take two dainty steps forward before jumping down and landing on Jack’s back. She makes a point of turning in a circle one, after which she curls up and settles in for a nap.

“Awesome,” Josh says happily.

Vasquez can’t help but laugh. “They like each other, I see.”

Josh looks up at the sound of his voice, his face brightening at the same time. “Hey, doc,” he drawls lazily. “I’ll be damned, you’re even more handsome when I’m sober.”

“And you’re even more incorrigible, I see,” Vasquez informs him. “How’re you feeling today? Not too hung over, I hope?”

Josh winces and palms the back of his neck with one hand. “Ain’t gonna lie,” he says sheepishly. “There’s maybe a reason I only made it in here now.”

“Aww,” Vasquez replies, “and here I was thinking it was because you knew I wouldn’t be in until this time.”

Josh winks. “Nope,” he says. “That’s only an added bonus. Nah, it took this long for the room to stop spinning every time I breathed wrong. Peace of advice, there is a limit to how much whiskey a body can reasonably handle.”

“I prefer tequila,” Vasquez with a shrug. “Nevertheless, it looks like you’re a man of your word. I take it you’ve come to collect young Constantine?” He pitches the words like a question, but it turns out he needn’t have bothered.

“You got that right,” Josh replies, nodding heavily before quirking an eyebrow knowingly. “Did you think I wouldn’t?”

Vasquez shrugs. “You had clearly had a lot to drink,” he says, aiming to sound noncommittal. “In my experience that doesn’t always make for the most reliable judgement calls.”

“Okay, fair,” Josh admits, “but I was serious either way. Already went online and ordered her some stuff, but I figured I’d ask you folks for a list of the essentials while I’m here. ‘Ve never had a cat before.”

“They’re actually remarkably self sufficient once you get past the litter training,” Vasquez tells him. “Unless she turns out to have an underlying condition we don’t know about, Jack is probably much more work than she’ll ever be.”

Josh makes a scoffing sound and rubs the dog’s ears with one hand. “Jack’s an absolute angel, and don’t you let anybody else tell you different. Any reports of him eating things and people he shouldn’t are wildly exaggerated.”

Vasquez blinks. “I’ll keep that in mind,” he says solemnly. “Actually, I should get you to fill out some paperwork for him as well. Emma mentioned you’re interested in transferring to our clinic?”

He again poses the words like a question as opposed to a done deal, and is this time rewarded by Josh nodding seriously. “This place ain’t much further from my apartment than where we usually go, and the folks we see are pretty stuffy. They think Jack’s a lot to handle.”

Vasquez stares down at the dog. Due to his size, he has no doubt that Jack would be a right bastard to deal with if he decided to be difficult, but so far the big dog has barely blinked. “He seems fine to me.”

“Right?” Josh says, a pleased grin spreading across his face. “I think he can sense that you’re good people. Anyway, what do you say, want to take us on?”

He says it in a manner that is as per usual rife with innuendo, and Vasquez has to fight to keep from laughing. “I’m sure we can work something out,” he says, and no matter what anyone claims he is most certainly not flirting. “I’ll get you the necessary forms to fill out, as well as a release for you to sign so we can get Jack’s records from the other office. Do you mind waiting a bit longer?”

Josh gives him a one shoulder shrug and waves a hand lazily while resting the other on Jack’s flank. “I’m in no rush,” he says, “and I don’t think these guys are either,” he adds, gesturing at where both dog and cat are contentedly snoozing.

“Not so much, no,” Vasquez says with a laugh. “Give me a minute, and we’ll see about getting you sorted.”

Teddy, the knowing little shit, is waiting for him with two sets of registration forms, the release for Jack, and a grin that turns into a full blown smirk when he hands the whole package over. 

Vasquez eyes him as he accepts the documents. “You were here last night,” he says accusingly. “If I find out you switched shifts just to get another floor show, I will be most displeased.”

Teddy snorts. “I’m double shifting because you and Emma still haven’t found a replacement for the last clerk you scared off.” He flashes a sunny smile that Vasquez doesn’t at all feel is warranted. “So, really, you’ve got no one to blame for this but yourself.”

Vasquez huffs, paying more attention to the forms as he shuffles through them to make sure he has everything he needs. “I had nothing to do with that. That was entirely on Emma.”

“I can hear you,” Emma singsongs from somewhere out in the reception area. Vasquez ignores her in favour of tucking the papers under his arm and grabbing a pen for Josh to use.

“I’ll bring these back to you once they’re all filled out,” he says, and Teddy makes a face at the thought of the data entry time coming his way. “You’re the one who gets all up in arms when anyone else touches the computer.”

Teddy mutters something that’s no doubt an insult under his breath, but Vasquez ignores him in favour of returning to Josh and his little mini-menagerie. He’s pleased to note that man, dog, and kitten are all exactly where he’d left them. Although Constantine is upright and beginning to explore.

“Here’s what I need you to fill out,” he says, holding the stack of papers up so Josh can see. “Sorry there’s so much of it.”

Josh shrugs, seemingly unconcerned. “S’all good,” he says.

Nudging Jack’s head gently backwards, he pulls his legs out from beneath the big dog and climbs to his feet. Jack barely reacts, merely pillows his chin on his own paws, but Constantine lets put a displeased chirp, and attaches herself to Josh’s pant leg as he moves.

As Vasquez watches, the pint sized kitten literally scales the other man, her claws using his jeans as an impromptu ladder, and no doubt nicking the odd bit of flesh along the way.

If Josh is bothered by this behaviour, however, he doesn’t show it. Instead, he simply lets the kitten get within grabbing distance, and then scoops her up to let her perch on his shoulder once she is.

“You’re going to teach her bad habits that way,” Vasquez points out, but his heart’s not really in it. The picture before him is just too close to verging in adorable, and his traitorous stomach is doing flips again. “She’ll never stop if you let her get away with things she shouldn’t.”

“Most folks’d probably say the same thing about me,” Josh replies with a toothy grin. He gives the kitten a quick pat as he leans over to examine the papers Vasquez has brought him. “Who gives a damn?”

Vasquez chooses wisely not to answer, and instead they begin going over the paperwork. There’s a lot of it, but thankfully most of the questions are fairly to the point, meaning they have everything sorted quickly - minus one notable exception.

“Are you sure that’s what you want to call her?” Vasquez asks. He knows it’s not his business, but aside from being completely out there, the name is practically bigger than the kitten herself.

Josh, however, nods solemnly before flashing another one of those knowing grins. “What? Are you saying you don’t like it? I’m hurt, doc.”

“She’s a  _ girl _ cat, guero,” Vasquez says in exasperation.

“So?” Josh demands, looking affronted as he lets the little ball of fluff scramble over his shoulders, keeping one hand beneath her in case she falls. “Constantine does not conform to outdated concepts of gender.”

Vasquez considers this. “Who used that phrase in front of you, and can I hit them?”

Rather than look offended, Josh just laughs. “You can do whatever your pretty little head desires,” he announces, plucking the unfortunately, officially dubbed Constantine from his shoulder where she’s begun to bat at his neck. “Is there anything else you need me to fill out?”

There isn’t, but Vasquez finds himself unwilling to see the man go. “We should probably set up that vaccination regimen like you mentioned last night,” he says, even though that is literally Teddy’s job and not his. “Do you happen to know when Jack is due for his next ones as well?”

Josh turns out to have an entire schedule laid out in his phone calendar, and Vasquez dies a little on the inside. He can’t help it, he’s a veterinarian, and is therefore pre-programmed to be charmed by people who are dedicated to their animals.

“This is very thorough,” he remarks absently while he brings up his own calendar. Technically either he or Emma could be the ones to administer Constantine’s shots, but Vasquez is already determined to keep this one for himself. “I’m impressed.”

Josh shrugs, looking a little sheepish for the first time in their admittedly brief acquaintance. He scratches at the back of his neck with the hand that doesn’t have Constantine wrapped around it.

“Jack didn’t have an overly nice start in life,” he says gruffly, pointedly refusing to elaborate further. “I make sure he has everything he should to try and make up for some of it.”

Vasquez is willing to bet Jack has more than that, and that Constantine likewise will as well. He doesn’t comment, however. “We should get her shots started as soon as possible since we’re going to have to stagger them due to her age. I can squeeze you in next Friday afternoon.”

Unaware that Vasquez usually keeps that time blocked off for paperwork so he can clear out on time before the weekend, Josh doesn’t blink. “Sure,” he says instead. “I can make that work.”

Knowing full well Emma and Teddy are going to be all over him when they see the schedule - he’s nothing if not a creature of habit - Vasquez plugs the appointment into his calendar with a nod. “Excellent, I’ll see you then.”

Josh, unsurprisingly, smirks. “It’s a date.”

  
  


**Author's Note:**

> Title is a reference to the myth of cats having nine lives, since here Constantine is definitely a very lucky lady.
> 
> ALSO - although not part of the RBB this fic has a companion piece by the ever awesome Lapin, who doubled as cheerleader/unofficial editor for it. Make sure you read and give her some love too!


End file.
